Flyover Video Of Miniature NYC Is Too Cute

Stephen Colbert's Flyover Portrait Of Miniature NYC Is Too Cute

Freshly-minted Late Show host and beloved rascal Stephen Colbert finally dropped some until-now-unseen footage of New York City in miniature mode, and it is awesome.

This director’s cut of the show’s opening sequence, created by Fernando Livschitz, debuts footage that went unused until the official Late Show account tweeted it out today.

If you've watched the show, you've seen bits of this flyover before. And you've heard the funky theme song. But the typical shots swooping above the city, a tired trope likely familiar to anyone who’s ever watched an old movie based in New York, gets a fresh approach. And if you look closely, you can spot many New York City landmarks, from the Empire State Building to St. Patrick's Cathedral.

The clip uses a camera technique called tilt-shift that simulates a miniature scene. You can find a similar filter in Instagram, though when used here, the effect is much more dramatic. The result is a portrayal of the city that looks too pleasant and clean (and tiny) to be real.